The Ben Stokes-led England cricket team scripted history in the 1st Test match against Pakistan at Rawalpindi as they defeated them by 74 runs to register their first Test win after 22 years. Though, the game turned out to be an interesting one, however, the pitch at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium came under severe criticism as it was a completely dead pitch and it provided nothing for the bowlers. Several cricketers and commentators criticized the pitch. Now after suffering a humiliating defeat, Pakistan captain Babar Azam too has criticized the track after the loss in the 1st Test.
Speaking in the post-match press conference, Babar said that they didn’t get the track they were hoping for. He revealed how he had a discussion to get a turning track at Rawalpindi, but all he got was a completely flat pitch. He said:
“Dekhe, kafi input tha . Humne jo plan kiya tha, jo chaha rahe the, aise pitch hume mili nehi. Aur jo humare plans they waise execute ho nehi paye unfortunately. Hum thoda turning side pe jaa rahe the. Waise plan tha humara. But unfortunately weather ke wajah se aur thoda preparation ke wajah se waise wicket ban nehi paye “(I gave a lot of inputs. But we did not get the pitch we wanted. We wanted a turning track and our plans were based on that. But because of the weather conditions and lack of preparation, we didn’t get the pitch as per our plan),
Talking about the match, the England batters put up a stellar show on the dead pitch of Rawalpindi. The Ben Stokes men posted a total of 657/10 in the innings, which was also the highest ever score of England in the longest format of the game.
Chasing a total of 657 runs, Pakistan also had a great outing with the bat as they amassed 579/10 in their first innings.
England cricket team shocked everyone in the third innings as they declared after scoring 264 runs and giving a target of 343 runs to Pakistan. Fortunately, England pacers found a hint of swing on the final day of the match as they rattled the Pakistani batter. England’s James Anderson and Ollie Robinson picked four wickets each. At the end of the day, Naseem Shah and Mohammad Ali put up a brave fight with the bat but England’s bowlers were too good for them.
Interestingly, in the 1st Test match between Pakistan and England, a total of 1768 runs, thus, setting a new record for the most runs scored in a five-day Test match.
